


Balloon Animals

by teaandabiccie



Series: Captain Senses [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alpha Monkey D. Luffy, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Roronoa Zoro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:41:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27338101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teaandabiccie/pseuds/teaandabiccie
Summary: Luffy has a very specific brand of alpha caring and Zoro is not prepared to be on the the receiving end of it.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Roronoa Zoro, Monkey D. Luffy/Roronoa Zoro
Series: Captain Senses [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126187
Comments: 18
Kudos: 152





	Balloon Animals

**Author's Note:**

> I have a lot of rejected ideas from my other OP ABO fics Kintsukuroi and How to Date the First Mate. And some silly stuff, spawned from discussion. Some of them I still feel might be worth sharing. This, by far, is the silliest.  
> Can be read as pre-relationship, one-sided, queerplatonic or entirely platonic - it's open to your interpretation!

It didn't hit Zoro until he was already floating on open waters in Monkey D. Luffy's tiny boat without a landmass in sight. Riding on the high of escaping death by corrupt marine, taking a bath after nine days of no sanitation, and eating and drinking his fill for the first time in far too long, nothing had seemed completely real. Nothing had seemed particularly important beyond warm water on his skin, cool water moistening his throat and the promise of food and freedom - and his ambitions able to be fulfilled.

Weariness made his limbs heavy. The constant heat of the sun had beaten down upon him and this, mixed with the lack of water, gave his body a lingering heat and his skin a continual tickle that remained long after he'd attained sustenance and shelter. His body ached all over. The rocking of the boat made him weirdly light-headed. But all of that was understandable, he supposed, given that he'd spend a week and a half tied to a post.

It wasn't a concern. He would acclimatise. He'd rest up while they were on the boat and be on top fighting form for his new captain by the time they hit the next island.

Luffy helped. Especially when his stomach started to cramp, probably protesting having been so empty for so long and then filled to the point of bursting. The younger pirate kept up a constant stream of conversation and requests for games - most of which were modified versions of 'I Spy'.

It wasn't until the sun had set on them and Luffy had grown quiet, leaning back and staring up the stars, that Zoro understood why he was really feeling like utter garbage. The cramping, the lack of energy, the lightheadedness, the heat and the feeling of every touch of anything at all against his sunburnt skin being simultaneously too much and not enough. He should have noticed immediately. But it wasn't until he felt the first rush of warmth at the seat of his pants that the fear flashed through him.

It hadn't been _the_ heat that had done this to body. It was _his_ heat. His heat, which he had been so sure was not supposed to hit for at least another month, which he hadn't prepared for because usually, he noticed before it got to this point. Usually, it was a simple task to bag a bounty and rent out a room for few days. His preheat was uncomfortable but it wasn't debilitating. And if it lasted a couple of days then that was all the buffer he needed to make sure that by the time he was actually incapacitated, he was at the very least somewhat safe.

His preheat was now ending. There were no bounties, no inns, and he was less than five feet away from an unknown alpha with no possibility of privacy.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath.

"Huh?" said Luffy, turning his head to look at him. His body was still angled outwards, the shape of his straw hat silhoutted against the stars. His face was shadowed underneath its brim.

Zoro felt his heart thump unsteadily in his chest. Luffy was already as far away as the small boat would allow him to get. Earlier on, Zoro had been telling him to get his ass off the edge of the boat in case he fell in while Zoro was napping. Now his mind was split. The logical part of his mind, the part that made him _Zoro_ , that had kept him alive and free for all these years, wanted the alpha to stay as far away as he possibly could be. He liked Luffy. He didn't want to shove him in the water, but if he had to do that to subdue him, to keep his own freedom and dreams alive, then his captain would have to understand. They had agreed on it after all.

The other part of him, the part that thrummed deep in his chest and ached to be held, was appalled by that notion. The other part wanted Luffy to turn fully to face him, wanted him closer, closer, _closer_.

Neither part could be allowed to win. The rubber man was his captain now. He deserved his loyalty and his strength, not his weakness or his nature. He'd have to come up with an alternative.

Maybe Luffy just... wouldn't notice? Then it would all just... go away.

"Nothing," he all but growled. "Go to sleep. I'll watch the boat."

Yeah, that seemed like a solid plan. If he just pretended he was fine, Luffy wouldn't notice. If he didn't notice then nothing needed to happen between them. Zoro could just suffer in silence for a while and then they could back to looking for the next island... and a navigator.

Luffy seemed to regard him for a moment. "Naaah, you get first sleep. I wanna stay up for a bit."

Zoro frowned. Luffy hadn't turned away from him and though the shadow of his hat obscured the young pirate captain's face, he could _feel_ that piercing gaze. It felt as though it stripped him bare and there was nowhere to hide. A shiver rolled down his spine, followed by the familiar tingle of heat raking over his skin.

"I'm not tired," he said, sucking in a sharp breath.

For a long moment, Luffy didn't move. He didn't look away either.

Zoro squirmed, face beginning to flush red under the alpha's attention - even though it wasn't like that, _couldn't_ be like that, because even if the captain wanted it to be, Zoro wasn't so cheap as to let it be. But his body didn't know that. All his body knew was the faint scent of barbequed meat and danger and _alpha_ from the other side of the boat. He'd picked up the scent of alpha arousal many times during his preheat. This wasn't that. But he was hyper aware of it, of the possibility, nonetheless.

He was half-hard already and shifted his legs in an attempt to hide it. He had to bite his lip as the motion caused friction, making the problem worse. The pain grounded him.

"Hmm," said Luffy, tilting his head to the side as he regarded his first crew member.

Zoro froze, resisting the conflicting urges to hide from his captain's eyes and allow the alpha a better view of the body he was trying to appraise.

Finally, Luffy said, "Even if he's not tired, Zoro doesn't look too good so maybe he should try to sleep anyway."

Something sank inside him. _Pathetic,_ he thought. And his inner omega agreed that he must be to be dismissed this way. Unwanted.

But it was better this way, wasn't it?

"I'm fine," he replied, in a voice that was entirely too quiet.

Seawater slapped against the side of the boat. Zoro let one hand drop into it, cold rushing over his fingers.

Luffy's reply was almost as quiet as his had been. "But you were tied to post for a long time."

Zoro pulled his hand back, crossed his arm across his body. The cold seawater soaked into his side, as shocking as it was relieving. "I can handle it," he answered gruffly, shooting an indignant look at the captain.

Luffy grinned, the brightness of his teeth highlighted in the moonlight reflecting from the water. "I know. Zoro's really strong - I can tell," he said, simply, brightly. Something inside Zoro melted in response, uncoiled. "But it's probably not easy to sleep well when you're tied to a post and you can't move or anything. So sleeping in a boat's probably way better."

There was no way to respond to that. Luffy's unguarded smile set Zoro off balance. He found himself having to look away, breathing in through his nose. Luffy's scent met him, as warm and comforting as that smile. None of the harsh impersonal lust he was used to.

"I-" Zoro began. "The boat is definitely better."

This captain was better. This life was better. Even with no navigator, no rations and no direction. Now if only that scent could envelop him. If only there was something soft and warm to snuggle into and simply breathe. That would suffice... for now.

Except it wouldn't. Because he wasn't letting his guard down like that. Not at all.

"Shishishi, so Zoro gets first sleep, right?"

Luffy's laugh was like windchimes. He was still grinning when Zoro chanced a look over at him, sitting tall like a cat perched at the highest point on the prow of the boat. His eyes were closed. Everything about him was relaxed and free.

Zoro knew he needed to say no. This wasn't his plan. His plan was for Luffy to sleep while he attempted to deal with his little heat problem alone, without interruption or prying eyes. But as he looked at his new captain, he found that all fight immediately left him. He couldn't go against the alpha's wishes. Had he been played? It must have been his heat. It was his body's fault, of course. Absolutely nothing else.

"If that's what Sencho wants," he said with a breathless sigh instead.

Impossibly, Luffy's grin only widened. He laughed again. "Shishishi! Yup!" he said, popping the 'p'. "Zoro's gotta get some sleep. Captain's orders."

Normally, Zoro would bristle at that. He was a free man. He'd gone to great lengths to ensure it stayed that way. He might have had the misfortune to present as an omega at the age of sixteen but that didn't mean he had to submit to society's expectations. Any alpha who thought they could command him around like he was some well-trained pet could kiss his ass - except that they weren't permitted anywhere near it.

Yet he found himelf instinctively settling down, curling up on his side like he hadn't in front of others for a long time and allowing his eyes to flutter closed.

"Aye, Sencho," he said softly.

The now familiar scent of his captain thickened, surrounding him like a blanket. Warm, safe, _cared for_ , Zoro drifted off to sleep. His body did not even await his consent.

-

He woke to a hand on his forehead.

"Mmfm?" Words did not come easily. He was warm, too warm. His tongue felt fat in his mouth.

The hand remained where it was. Zoro pressed into it. The thumb stroked the side of his temple before fingers rubbed up into his hair. So good, he never wanted this to end.

"Mmmm."

The hand was retracted. "Zoro?"

Awareness returned to Zoro with a sudden rush. He jolted upright - or aimed to. His limbs either weren't quite awake or weren't quite connected to his brain properly. He shot up, headbutting something that was both surprisingly hard and also rubbery. It bounced him back and his arms gave out, dropping him back onto the ground, face down. Except it wasn't the ground. The ground wasn't warm, wasn't soft, did not smell so good that it was almost edible.

Uncaring about anything else, Zoro nosed into it rubbing the side of his face against it. It parted a little bit as he did, allowing both sides of his face to touch at once. Perfect, he thought, and practically purred.

"Um, Zoro?" said Luffy.

Luffy. His captain. The alpha. Whose scent currently enveloped him and _oh shit, oh no._

He pushed himself up on shaky arms, mortification flushing his face a vibrant red. The comfortable surface had been Luffy's legs. Luffy's legs, which he had just pushed his face between. He swore under his breath, the curse catching in the back of his throat. He wasn't allowed to die before realising his dream but in this moment, he sort of wanted to.

His body disagreed. His body wanted to return to his previous position, wanted to demand that those fingers return to his hair immediately, wanted them suddenly to also be somewhere else or one of several somewheres which he realised now very much wanted an alpha's attention. But failing that, any attention. He shivered.

To his credit, Luffy only looked down at him with mild concern. "If you wanna go back to sleep, it's okay," he said.

Zoro edged backwards away from him, until his butt collided with the edge of the boat. It sent a shockwave through his body. Even the touch of inanimate object reminded him how much his body desired the touch of an animate one. He flopped back down, half onto his stomach, bringing his leg up in an attempt to camouflage the state of his body. He buried his burning face in his arms.

"I'm up if you wanna sleep the rest of the night," he mumbled. Even his ears burned red. Luffy apparently didn't know how 'up' he currently was. Zoro fervently hoped it remained that way.

Luffy hummed. "Nah, it's already morning. Zoro was really tired so I let him sleep."

"Shit, really?" said Zoro, lifting his head just enough to see where the captain sat, shifting uncomfortably and watching too closely with his large, dark eyes. "You should've woken me up."

Luffy nodded. "Mmhm, but it's fine. I got lots of sleep when I was drifting in the barrel and you seem like you really need it. Was gonna let you keep sleeping but you were making these little noises so I thought you might be having a bad dream. Your face is really red and you're super warm. You can get really bad dreams when you're sick like that."

Zoro flinched like he'd been hit. "I'm not sick."

Luffy nodded again. "You don't smell like you're sick but you do smell really weird."

Zoro's mouth was suddenly very dry and tasted terrible. Something bad seized his insides and pulled them downwards. "Oh," he said, tightening the grip he had on his own arms.

So Luffy thought his scent was weird. So what? Logically speaking, Zoro didn't need his captain to want him like that. Luffy had recruited him for his skills not the additional equipment he had between his legs. That should be a good thing. He should be celebrating. An alpha with no interest at all in taking his chances on an omega in heat. If Sensei was to be believed, those were rarer than gold dust. This should tell him that he'd chosen to follow the right person.

Yet he couldn't stop the disappointment from flooding his heat-addled mind, couldn't keep the undertones of venom from his voice as he added, "I'm an omega. I'm in heat."

It was Luffy's turn to be taken aback. "Oh," he said, eyebrows rising underneath the brim of his straw hat.

"Is that a problem, _Sencho_?" said Zoro, fiercely. He lifted his head, pushing himself up on his elbows to look up at Luffy, challenging him with his eyes.

He tried to ignore the bad taste rising in the back of his throat, the cold anticipation of rejection sinking in the pit of his stomach. It wouldn't be the first time he'd heard of this. He knew he didn't exactly fit the definition of what most people expected an omega to be. His appearance alone gave most people the impression of a different dynamic. And his scent wasn't exactly the most common or gentle or alluring of omega scents. People assumed what they wanted and that was fine.

But he'd been told in no uncertain terms that if he followed this path, nobody looking for an omega would want one like him. And anybody looking for an alpha or a beta probably wouldn't be impressed when they discovered what he really was.

Expect rejection. Expect to be alone. Or prepare to be a trophy. The world's greatest swordsman. An omega. He wasn't a stranger to laughter or sneers or disgust.

It was the offers to 'fix' him that were the worst. Like it was him and not this world that was broken. Maybe he was, but he'd show the world that they were too.

Luffy simply shook his head. "Nooope!" He fixed Zoro with a questioning look but the questions remained in his eyes alone.

Now that crisis of being kicked off the crew seemed to have been averted, Zoro's body ached. It was a deep seated ache. His fury faded with his strength. He let his arms lower his upper body back down to the deck, his chin resting on his forearm as he continued to look up at the other pirate on the boat.

Luffy's expression changed to thoughtful. He sat there for a moment, crossing his legs and bringing one hand under his chin as he thought, staring at something on the horizon. Then he slammed his fist into his palm, making Zoro jump.

"Yosh! Then I'll have to take care of you."

A shudder rolled down Zoro's body involuntarily, his inner omega purring at the thought of receiving an alpha's _care_. He ignored it. He didn't need it, didn't want it either, not really. Relief was not worth servitude. He tensed, eying the captain warily. Had he misjudged Luffy after all? Would he respond favourably when he was shoved away?

"I'm fine," he said testily. "If you just leave me alone, it'll pass in a couple of days."

Luffy was frowning. He shook his head sharply. His straw hat fell off and rolled on the floor. Zoro automatically reached out and grabbed it before the wind could take it and present it to the sea.

"But I'm your captain and you're my crew. I have to take care of you," Luffy said simply. Then frowned again. "Ah, but, we don't have any blankets or pillows so I can't give you those. And we don't have any food either so I can't give you that. Maybe I can catch a fish later? We do have some water. Hey Zoro, do you want some water?"

Zoro could only look at him with wider eyes, so shocked that this was the 'care' he was being offered that his expression was blank. "No, I'm fine."

"OK," said Luffy, counting on his fingers as he spoke. "So that's pillows and blankets, and food and drink. Now I have to entertain you so you'll feel better."

Zoro raised an eyebrow, the feeling of the straw between his finger and thumb the only thing tethering him to this as reality. Ah, there it was. Something inside him plummeted, while something worse began to buzz with anticipation. Zoro swallowed both feelings down. "No, you really don't. I don't need anything. I'm... I'm usually by myself when this hits so..."

"I'm the captain," Luffy repeated seriously.

Zoro squirmed. "Yes but-"

"Shanks' guys always said that the captain has to take care of his crew," Luffy added, like this settled the matter.

"I don't need taking care of," said Zoro as sharply as he could manage, which evidently wasn't too sharply because Luffy just kept talking.

"And Makino and Dadan's guys told me you have to take care of omegas when they're in heat too, because I'm an alpha and I gotta be a good one."

"But I don't - I'm not-" Zoro spluttered, while his instincts, his logic and his sheer surprise warred inside him.

"So I have to take care of you double," the captain concluded with an airy smile.

A pang of heat struck through Zoro's core, warmth pooling in his belly. Something in his stomach fluttered. He could feel his face burning. His inner omega purred at those words, wanted him to relax, lay back, tilt his head to the side to present the side of his neck to the alpha, unobstructed. _Yes, please,_ thrummed though his body. _Take good care of me._

A sudden gust of wind threatened to take the straw hat from Zoro's hands. He gripped tighter reflexively, a rough piece of straw digging into the pad of his thumb, reminding him who he was and what he really wanted.

"I don't need you to!" he hissed, closing his body off from the alpha in front of him as much as he was able to.

Luffy tilted his head to the side and fixed him with a weird look. "I know," he said slowly, finishing with a grin. "But Zoro's nakama now and I want to so I'm gonna."

Before Zoro could even react, he'd stood up and yanked his shorts down. They pooled around his ankles. Too shocked to move, Zoro's eyes widened as Luffy grabbed his flaccid penis in one hand and stretched it out, beginning to twist into some kind of knot. It figured, Zoro thought without his consent, that this part of him was rubber too.

He wondered through hazy _want_ of heat what that might feel like. Something inside him clenched and pulsed with need. It shot awareness back into Zoro's body and with it came the pathetic flash of fear as he saw in his mind's eye what was about to unfold. His swords were trapped underneath his body, hard, unyielding and useless. By the time he could draw one, hands would already be on him.

But his fists were always ready to go and with Luffy's shorts a hazard around his ankles, all it would take to bring him down would be one good punch to put him off balance. Heat or no heat, Zoro could do that. Even if he was uncoordinated. Even if the rubber man did have insane reflexes and flexibility.

This was not about to happen, no matter what his body wanted.

"Look," said Luffy, brandishing his penis like a weapon. Zoro obeyed in spite of himself. "It's a giraffe!"

A strangled sound was all that escaped from Zoro's throat as he proceeded to choke on his own spit.

"Ah," said Luffy, reaching for a canteen. He did not make any move to pull up his shorts as he did this, just stepping out of them and his sandals. Upon his return, he sat his bare butt down on the deck a lot closer to Zoro's face than the swordsman would generally like.

Except that as he ignored the water offered to him and regained control over his lungs, Zoro's eyes were drawn to the odd assortment of shapes resting between Luffy's legs. It was mesmerising, unfathomable and the most ridiculous and unbelievable thing he'd seen the devil fruit user do since they had met.

"W-what the hell?" he finally managed, voice hoarse. It was all he could think, let alone express.

Luffy laughed again. "It's a giraffe."

He stretched his creation - his _penis_ , Zoro's mind helpfully supplied - in Zoro's direction to afford him a better view of what was perhaps the weirdest balloon animal he had ever seen in his life. And it _was_ a balloon animal. The stretched out flesh of Luffy's dick - _Luffy's dick, what the hell?_ \- had been strategically twisted to achieve that shape. A shape that was... not a giraffe - and actually very lopsided.

"...A... what?" said Zoro, voice lifting in pitch in confusion as Luffy manipulated the 'neck' of the giraffe to make the 'head' move.

Zoro watched it wobble. The weight of want in his stomach had lifted, the heat dancing across his skin cooled by the sudden splash of confusion. But the lightheadedness remained. He wondered briefly if he was delirious. If he was still tied to a post and out of his mind with hunger and thirst, lost to the throes of heatstroke. But Luffy brought the thing perilously close to Zoro's face, close enough that a different kind of heat flushed across his cheeks and as he went cross-eyed in his body's automatic attempt to keep the intruding object in focus, he could feel the breeze against his skin.

So this was real then.

Misinterpreting Zoro's lack of understanding of _what in East Blue was happening to him right now_ , Luffy explained his creation, fingers pointing out each feature as he came across it. "It's like a dog but it's got horns and a loooong neck, see?"

He gestured up the length of the 'neck'. Zoro swallowed and flushed. Then Luffy giggled and he remembered himself.

"Get it out of my face," he barked, flushing even redder. At this point, his face might actually catch on fire. He sort of wished it would. This sight was already burnt into his retinas for years to come.

Luffy's smile faded. Zoro's heart squeezed. But the younger pirate pulled himself together, his 'giraffe' cradled protectively in his hands. "I could make a dog too but the giraffe is the best thing I know how to do." Realisation flashed in his eyes. "Oh, I could do a sword! Except it's kind of already a sword..."

His hands were already working to untwist the giraffe. Zoro wanted to look away but couldn't, even as it bounced back to its usual shape and was promptly caught and stretched back out again.

"What-" Zoro began. "What are you _doing_?"

Luffy looked up from his penis but didn't stop twisting it. "Making a sword," he said, as though that answered everything.

"Why?"

"Because Zoro has three swords so he must like 'em."

"I-" Zoro began, but Luffy was already finishing the final twist.

Now he had dangling between his legs what looked like a standard shortsword with an oversized hilt. And this was distracting. It would be off balance. It was wonky. It was also rubbery and cylindrical so it wouldn't slice at all and... a penis. Why was he critiquing a penis sword?

In spite of himself, he snorted, the ridiculousness of the situation slapping him like a cold wave to the face. Luffy beamed, one of his signature laughs escaping his lips though softer than usual. It was like throwing booze on a bonfire. Luffy's laughter made Zoro want to laugh harder. And that in turn, made Luffy laugh more. And when Luffy laughed, the 'sword' in his hands flopped from one side to the other in time with his shaking hand.

Zoro laughed so hard he couldn't breathe. His face tingled. By the time he stopped, he was lying face down on the deck, gasping for breath like a beached fish.

The soft peal of Luffy's good-natured laughter didn't stop. "Shishishi, I told Zoro I'd entertain him so he'd feel better."

"I-" Zoro began, turning his head to the side to look up at Luffy through the beads of moisture clouding his vision. It had been a while since he'd allowed himself to shed tears. It had been even longer sinced he'd laughed so hard that tears were inevitable. His stomach spasmed. He couldn't tell if it was heat or laughter. But it wasn't pressing; a newer feeling demanded his attention - an unexpected warmth. Comfort.

Luffy was still smiling at him, the dick sword resting placidly (and ridiculously) in his lap. For some reason, the sight of it not straining in the alpha's hands did not sting like rejection; it bloomed like trust.

Zoro swallowed again, rolling back onto his side, propping up his face with his elbow as he caught his breath. "But why?"

"I told you," said Luffy, "you're nakama now."

That felt warm. He felt that one move up to his face, which was still tingling and outside of his control. "No," he said, gesturing down at Luffy's penis. Luffy's penis, which was still a sword.

Supposedly, it was rude to laugh at an alpha's penis. But he couldn't not. He tried hard to muffle the resurgence of his amusement - if only because it kind of hurt to laugh.

"Why?" he choked out.

Luffy's head tilted to the side, impatience trickling into his tone. "Zoro likes swords," he repeated.

"No," said Zoro, biting his lower lip. It took a couple of false starts to get out the next part. "B-ba-ha- balloon animals - why are you... making - _pffft_ \- balloon animals... with your _dick_?"

"Oh!" Luffy grinned, leaning back on his hands. The dick-sword lay neglected in his lap, still exposed to the sea breeze. Zoro tried to look at his face. "'Cause you're an omega and I'm an alpha and I'm supposed to entertain you with my dick 'cause it's stretchy and that's what makes heats better."

Looking at Luffy's face was suddenly easy. Zoro found himself searching it, staring indredulously. "...Who told you that?"

Luffy shrugged. "Dadan's guys kept talking about how omegas need to be entertain by alpha dicks 'cause they stretch and stuff. An' since I'm made of rubber, I can stretch really far. So I told my brother I bet I could make more entertaining shapes with mine than he could. An' he said I should I try it if I ever met an omega I wanted to make feel better. But then he left before I could ask Makino to judge us."

"And you don't think-" Zoro began but then shook his head and pushed the thought away. Luffy didn't need him to tell him that his brother was almost definitely messing with him. Now wasn't the time or the place for that conversation. It could wait until Zoro's heat was over, until the talk of omegas and alphas and what dicks that were not made of rubber could do didn't make him shudder with unwanted anticipation.

"Maybe you can judge if we run into him," announced Luffy.

Zoro spluttered, ignored the water that was once again pushed in his direction, then gave an emphatic: " _No._ I have _no_ desire to see your brother's dick."

Luffy seemed surprised by that, then grinned again. "Shishishi! 'Cause Zoro's mine, right?"

Zoro choked yet again. "No," he hissed through a painful breath.

Luffy stretched out a rubbery arm to pat his back with entirely too much force. Zoro turned the hissed word into an actual hiss, meant to make it clear to the captain in no uncertain terms to get off him _immediately_. But his body disagreed. Those words made his heart thump unsteadily. He was still lightheaded from the laughing and the heat haze. And Luffy's scent blanketed him, pushing onto him the urge to _stay_ , the notion of _home_. He was acutely aware of how hot his face still was, and it was only getting hotter.

"I've decided," said Luffy. "Zoro's my nakama, not Ace's."

"Don't go deciding things on your own," snapped Zoro, as the hand mercifully (regretfully) was retracted. "Just because you showed me your p-" He didn't mean to laugh. He really didn't. But his eyes drifted down to Luffy's lap and it was just sitting there, with one side of the hilt bigger than the other, beginning to untwist like a deflating balloon. And the very concept of it existing was still so ridiculous. He had no control over it. It was like he was high. "-p-penis sword doesn't mean I want anything else."

"That's okay," said Luffy, pausing as his twists finally undid themselves and his dick sprung free, retracting back to what Zoro assumed was its usual size and position. "I told you - I only know how to make a dog, a giraffe or a sword."

Zoro just looked at him, feeling the strength sap from his limbs and his soul.

"But we are nakama though," Luffy concluded. 

"Aye, Sencho," Zoro relented with a sigh, letting his head fall back down onto his arm. The _'And that's all'_ didn't make it out of his mouth and floated in the air, unsaid.

For a moment, Zoro simply laid there with it, for all the discomfort of the first day of his heat, oddly comfortable just to _be_. Whether Luffy felt it or not, Zoro didn't know. He didn't see either; his eyelids fluttered and closed. But his captain sat in the silence like he did for a long enough moment that Zoro's mind started to drift. Not to the place it usually drifted during heat, somewhere where the ghosts of fingertips raked across his skin and desperation rolled in his stomach, built until he woke, body hot and hurting. This time it slipped off somewhere safer, satisfying, warm.

Luffy's cheerful voice called to him through it all but didn't pull him back. Instead the sound was like a blanket being tucked around his shoulders, soothing his inner omega, reminding him that he was wanted, cared for, loved.

Even if he wasn't, not really. It wasn't worth fighting with himself over. It was enough just let it be.

"Zoro _does_ feel better though, doesn't he?"

As unexpectedly as a balloon sword, it hit him: he did feel better. He hadn't felt this good during a heat in... well ever, actually. That was something to puzzle over later - or to ignore completely until the next time he was inconvenienced by the nature of his body. But not now. Now, he let his pathetic instincts assure him that it was because he had an alpha now. Because he was being taken care of.

Like he couldn't do that for himself.

It just wasn't enough when he did it.

"Aye, Sencho," he breathed, the words slurred with the stirrings of sleep.

"Yosh!" said Luffy, somehow making a whisper seem like a shout. "Then Zoro should go back to sleep. I'll take really good care of him when he wakes up again too."

"You don't-" Zoro began to protest automatically, then deflated. Protests were useless. Luffy was a force of nature and would do what he wanted.

And if he didn't want to protest then that was his business. That was his moment of weakness that he allowed himself to sink into as his traitorous lips uttered his consent:

"Aye, Sencho."

Luffy's soft laughter sent him off towards another restful sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> I feel I should share that while writing this, I typoed 'manipulated' as 'namipulated' and I think it is the most accurate typo I have ever created.  
> "Why is Sanji carrying all those bags?"  
> "Oh, he was namipulated."  
> "Ah."
> 
> Thanks for reading!  
> I hope you enjoyed <3


End file.
